Healthy Skepticism Library item: 16268

Warning: This library includes all items relevant to health product marketing that we are aware of regardless of quality. Often we do not agree with all or part of the contents.

Publication type: Journal Article

Haug C.
The risks and benefits of HPV vaccination.
JAMA 2009 Aug 19; 302:(7):795-6

Abstract:

WHEN DO PHYSICIANS KNOW ENOUGH ABOUT THEnbeneficial effects of a new medical interventionnto start recommending or using it? Whennis the available information about harmful adverseneffects sufficient to conclude that the risks outweighnthe potential benefits? If in doubt, should physicians err onnthe side of caution or on the side of hope? These questionsnare at the core of all medical decision making. It is a complicatednprocess because medical knowledge is typically incompletenand ambiguous. It is especially complex to makendecisions about whether to use drugs that may prevent diseasenin the future, particularly when these drugs are givennto otherwise healthy individuals. Vaccines are examples ofnsuch drugs, and the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccinenis a case in point.